GUEST POST BY MARTIN ROTH: Book Excerpt Tour, “Brother Half Angel,” by Martin Roth

Brother Half Angel

 By Martin Roth

“Brother Half Angel” is the first in a series of international thrillers by Martin Roth. These feature Brother Half Angel, the leader of a secret new church military order dedicated to helping Christians under attack around the world.

In this first book of the series, he is dispatched urgently to China, where an underground seminary is under siege from fanatical sword-wielding members of a local cult who still pay homage to the bloodthirsty extremists who tried to expel all foreigners from China in the nineteenth century.

The following is a short excerpt from the book (continued from http://www.barbaraannderksen.com/ and http://www.kimpayne.wordpress.com). Scroll to the end to learn how to read more, and also to learn how you can buy the book for a special price and with the chance to win a $200 Amazon gift voucher.

Chapter 3 

Fulang, China

Daniel looked at Ling, clearly in great distress. He had not seen him like this before. Unfortunately, Jenny pressed on.

“What’s going on?” she asked. “What on earth is happening?”

“He’ll tell us,” said Daniel, annoyed at his wife’s apparent insensitivity. “I’m sure he’s going to tell us.”

But now Ling lapsed into silence, rubbing at his head with both hands as if trying to locate a dreadful itch, his eyes darting around the room. Finally he spoke. “I don’t know who did it. Or why.”

“Have you called the police?” asked Jenny. Daniel translated.

“We can’t possibly call the police. You know that.” He was clearly angered by the suggestion.

“But someone’s been murdered.”

“You know that we can’t have the police here, nosing around.”

“But when someone is murdered…”

“He is a martyr. A martyr of the church. If the police come they will close us down.”

“They’ll think it’s an English school.”

“We cannot take that risk.”

Once more he went silent.

Brother Yoon turned to Daniel and Jenny. “It’s a warning,” he said to them in English. Yoon was a stocky, middle-aged man from one of Korea’s gigantic mega-churches. He had lived in China for more than a decade, tirelessly aiding the underground church.

“A warning?”

“It’s those Plum Flower boxers.”

“Plum Flower boxers?” asked Jenny.

“I’ll explain later,” said Daniel. He looked back at Yoon. “At the temple? All those men practising martial arts?”

“Yes, them. It’s a Taoist temple. They hate foreigners. And they especially hate foreign Christians.”

In their two months in Fulang, Daniel had sometimes taken to riding one of the seminary bicycles around town to explore. In this hectic and ugly environment, the temple actually stood out as a mini-oasis of beauty and tranquility. Once he had seen lines of men there training in the martial arts, punching and kicking the air, and screaming in unison. This, he learned, was a local variant of kung fu known as Plum Flower boxing, even though it did not really resemble Western-style boxing.

“Why do they hate foreigners?” asked Jenny. “And foreign Christians?”

Yoon shrugged. “They just do. It gives them a feeling of superiority. Having someone to look down on. It’s not just foreign Christians. They hate all Christians. I think they really despise Chinese Christians. They see them as somehow slaves of the West - without honor or dignity. Forsaking their own Chinese heritage.”

“But they don’t come and murder people just because they’re Christians, do they?” asked Daniel.

Again Yoon shrugged.

“And why Brother Shuei? He was no different from any of our other students. Passionate for Jesus, wanting to spread the Word. But so is everyone here.”

📙📙📙📙📙

You can pick up a copy of Brother Half Angel from Amazon

DO YOU HAVE DESIRES: Devotional from "Am I Okay, God?" by Lorilyn Roberts

                                

 

Delight yourself in the Lord; and he will give you the desires of the heart.

—Psalm 37:4

Have you ever wanted something and thought it would never happen, but then it did happen? God puts longings in our hearts so he can fulfill them.

 

*~*~*~*~*~

 

From Seventh Dimension – The Door, a Young Adult Christian Fantasy:

“Can you read that stuff?”

“Sure,” Rachel laughed. “But I don’t know what it means. You could too if I taught you.” Rachel flipped to the first page. “You start on this side.” Her finger pointed to a line of Hebrew and she ran her finger across the page from right to left.

“Really?”

“Yes.” Rachel giggled. “So who reads backwards, the English or the Jews?”

“I’d say the Jews. I can say that since I’m not Jewish, right?”

“Why not?”

“Writing would sure be easier if English were right to left. I wouldn’t smear my words.”

Rachel nodded. “I forget you’re left-handed. It’s crazy, isn’t it—like the Brits drive on the left side and we drive on the right.”

We walked for a while not saying anything. I glanced at my friend with her striking olive skin, almond brown eyes, and brown hair. “Do you like being Jewish?”

“Yes, I guess. I don’t know any different.”

“I wish I was Jewish.”

“Why?” Rachel asked.

“It would be neat to be able to say I was something.”

—Shale Snyder and Rachel Franco, chapter one

 

*~*~*~*~*~*

 

Oftentimes, we’re not aware of the depth of our longing until fulfillment. Then we realize, that’s what we wanted.

God fulfilled Shale’s longing by taking her to the homeland of the Jewish people. She met the king firsthand; not only that, she met a man with whom she fell in love.

When I graduated from high school, my senior class took a seven-day cruise to the Bahamas, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands. On the last night, the band played into the wee hours of the morning, like the band did on the Titanic the night it sank into the Atlantic. When the party began to wind down, the musicians started playing Jewish music. The tourists who weren’t Jewish cleared out and congregated around the edges of the dance floor to watch the Jews sing and dance.

What would it be like to be Jewish? I found it astounding that Jews from the entire world shared so much in common through their culture—their music, their dance, and their language.

The Jewish people have survived thousands of years of persecution in many countries and near annihilation in World War II. Yet they still make a joyful noise unto the Lord. More than that, my Lord and my Savior, Jesus Christ, was Jewish. I cried in my heart, “I want what they have—I want to be part of something greater than myself. I want to be part of a spiritual family. I want to be Jewish!”

In early grammar school, I attended Margaret Mitchell School in Atlanta, Georgia. My classmates were predominantly Jewish—and wealthy. My Jewish friends faithfully attended Hebrew classes a couple of times each week. I felt spiritually deprived. My family wasn’t Christian or Jewish. What did that make me?

I sometimes wonder if I am Jewish and don’t know it. Names have been changed through the centuries, so it’s possible. Often when I am around Jewish people, my spirit quickens.

That night so long ago, as I watched the Jews celebrate, my eyes were opened to a spiritual and cultural relationship for which I longed.

Twenty-two years later, I had my opportunity. I was finishing my senior year of undergraduate studies and had an opportunity to travel to the Holy Land. While there, I scuba dived in Eilat, but I didn’t get to dance.

Then, one day I was sitting in the Jewish Student Center with a University of Florida student who was helping me with my Hebrew language class. Celebratory music wafted through the walls. I soon heard shouts and cheers.

My student friend paused and said, “Every Thursday night, all the Jewish students come here to Beth Hillel to dance.”

“Can anyone join them?” I asked

She replied, “I don’t see why not.”

Guess where I was the next week? I introduced myself, made it clear I wasn’t Jewish, but I loved Jewish music. For the next few years, every Thursday night, I danced with my Jewish friends. Only when the rabbi and his talented wife/teacher moved away did my Jewish dancing end.

Sometimes when we want something that’s worthy of God’s love, he gives us more than we ask because he is a God of love.

 

 

 

Thank you, Jesus, for answered prayers. And those that you don’t answer the way I had hoped, thank you that you know what’s best for me. Help me to know myself the way you know me. Help me to give you my desires so that you can sanctify them for your glory. Amen.

 

 

 

 

WHAT ABOUT ME, GOD: Devotional from "Am I Okay, God?" by Lorilyn Roberts

When Peter saw him, he asked, “Lord, what about him?”

—John 21:21

You’re unique. If you were the only person God created, he would have sent Jesus to die for you. God has given you many talents. These gifts were not given to make you great or famous. They were given to you for one purpose: to glorify God.

*~*~*~*~*~*

From Seventh Dimension – The Door, a Young Adult Christian Fantasy:

Why would the king want to heal him? My life hadn’t changed. What about me? A voice spoke to me, “Don’t let others steal your joy. Don’t be jealous of others or concerned about not receiving their blessing. Think about the good things the king has given you.”

—Shale Snyder, chapter thirty-two

*~*~*~*~*~*

Instead of comparing yourself to others, thank God for the blessings he has given you. Envy is considered one of the seven deadly sins. A person consumed with jealousy is angry and dangerous. Covetousness kills—more than once I have captioned the news where a person was murdered by a maniacal person filled with rage, often fueled by jealousy.

Someday all the material possessions we claim we can’t live without will come to an end. Hollywood stars decked out in glittery jewelry will be long forgotten. So will worldly fame and fortune. Heaven has no need of those things. In fact, gold is so “worthless” that the streets of heaven are paved in it.

Will you be there? Remember: God doesn’t create junk—he creates beauty—despite the sin that so easily entangles. That’s why we need to be redeemed.

Do you know who you are in Christ? Have you forgotten something God did for you? Have you taken your eyes off of the king of kings?

As long as you have a beating heart, you have time to change direction. Don’t delay. Today 150,000 people will die. You only have this moment, this second.  Act now.

Help me, God, to listen to that voice inside of me—to allow your joy to touch my soul and melt my hardened heart. Help me to see your face and let go of all that holds me back. Help me to know you more and more.
Thank you, Jesus, for giving me second chances and third chances and seventy times seventy chances. Thank you for never giving up on me—as your daughter, your son, your child. 

http://bit.ly/savants

Get your copy of this great devotional book for teens that accompanies the Seventh Dimension - The Door.

GUILT: Devotional from "Am I Okay, God?" by Lorilyn Roberts

 GUILT

Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.

—Romans 12:2

Guilt is feeling responsible for a wrong, real or imagined. If we have committed an offense against someone, the Bible tells us we need to go to that person and ask forgiveness.

*~*~*~*~*~*

From Seventh Dimension – The Door, a Young Adult Christian Fantasy:

After the accident, the closet became my friend. I wanted to avoid Judd, who came over to visit Chumana. She was not my sister but we lived together.

Guilt overwhelmed me.

—Shale Snyder, chapter one

*~*~*~*~*~*

Guilt will keep us from experiencing a close relationship with God. Sometimes it’s difficult to know if our feeling of guilt is justified. Satan wants us to feel guilty—all the time. As long as we feel guilty, we’re self-absorbed.

First, determine if the feelings are from God. Ask God, did I commit an offense against you or another person? Ask God to forgive you and/or help you to go to the person you offended and seek forgiveness.
 

In Shale’s case, she did something wrong. While she made a partial confession to Rachel, she never apologized to Judd.
 

The guilt grew and became like a cancer, allowing hate to fester until God miraculously healed her—when she confessed.

But suppose you are stricken with false guilt? Someone or something is making you feel guilty when you shouldn’t feel that way.
 

Guilt can draw you towards a loving God or drive you away. How does guilt affect you? If it’s making you feel distant, go to God.

 

Sometimes our pain is so great we can’t get past it without counseling. Find someone you can trust and talk to him or her. Have someone pray with you. God never intended for you to walk the Christian life alone. You have a whole body of believers who are the discerning eyes, the patient ears, the loving arms, and the caring souls who want to help you.
 

Remember, you have an enemy who wants to destroy. He is real and powerful, but God is more powerful than he is. Allow Jesus to take control of your life. Don’t give the devil a foothold, lest the small foothold on the side of the mountain becomes the whole mountain. Allow God to set you free from guilt. No sin is so great that God can’t heal you from its effects—and even use your story of redemption to glorify him.

Only you, God, can set me free from guilt. Please help me to accept your freedom, and to let go of those things that are not from you.

Help me to let go of false guilt and be set free to accept your forgiveness. Help me to be renewed and filled with your perfect peace.

Use a free QR code AP to watch on your iphone.

http://bit.ly/Piano_Guys_Lord_Rings

Get Am I Okay, God? Devotionals from the Seventh Dimension on Amazon here.

THE DOOR: Devotional from "Am I Okay, God?" by Lorilyn Roberts

 THE DOOR

“Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and will dine with him, and he with me.”

Revelation 3:20

Is God standing at the door to your heart? If he is, it’s because he wants to come in and be your friend. He brings heavenly food that has eternal value, food that will feed you spiritually. God knows your needs before you even ask.  

*~*~*~*~*~*

From Seventh Dimension – The Door, a Young Adult Christian Fantasy:

The door creaked as I turned the handle. I held my breath and peered through the tiny slit. Moving shadows darkened the room.

—Shale Snyder, chapter one

*~*~*~*~*~*

Sometimes doors are closed and padlocked. Experiences from our past haunt us, making us afraid to open them. We want to be healed, but our sorrow and fear may prevent us from taking that leap of faith. We must all face our worst nightmare, but God promises even if we walk through the valley of the shadow of death, he will be there.

Shale was hiding in a closet, afraid of people, haunted by her past and afraid of her future. She was a prisoner of her foolish mistakes and insecurities.

Allow God in—open the door of your heart to the one and only one who can heal you.

Thank you, Jesus, for standing at the door and waiting for me to open it. Thank you that you know all my failures and mistakes and don’t hold them against me.

I invite you into the secret places that no one else can see. Help me to accept your love and receive your forgiveness. Thank you that you’re trustworthy and true, a father and a friend—my Savior.

http://bit.ly/Piano_Guys_Lord_Rings

Am I Okay, God? Devotionals from the Seventh Dimension

includes 26 more devotionals like this one and is a companion book

to Seventh Dimension - The Door, a Young Adult Fantasy

DARK SECRETS: Devotional "Am I Okay, God?" by Lorilyn Roberts

DARK SECRETS

Would not God have discovered it since he knows the secret of the heart?

—Psalm 44:21

Do you have a secret hidden in your heart—something that is so horrid you wouldn’t share it with anyone?

*~*~*~*~*~*

From Seventh Dimension – The Door, a Young Adult Christian Fantasy:

“I hid in the closet underneath the stairs—my safe house. Nobody would find me in here.”

—Shale Snyder, chapter one

*~*~*~*~*~*

God knows everything about you. Every thought and every deed you’ve ever done or will do is not hidden from his watchful eyes.

Including secrets. Satan will use anything he can to prevent you from experiencing God’s grace. Secrets are among his favorite weapons. The devil derives great pleasure using blackmail. You will never win playing his game. All he has to do is threaten to expose your secret sin—pornography, abortion, cheating, thievery—you name it.

My worst fears from the time I was young involved secret sins. I would convince myself if anyone knew “this or that” about me, I would be on the front page of the New York Times.

Seriously, in the past, when I was plagued with guilt, I would lie in bed at night and ponder what would happen if someone told something about me that was slanderous. Many poor souls have committed suicide to escape the judgment of others. Secrets of the heart can imprison you in a living hell. Is that how you want to live your life?

God doesn’t want you to live in fear. Bring your hidden sin to your heavenly father, confess it, and receive God’s unconditional forgiveness. Remember:  God died on the cross to heal you from all your sins—past, present, and future. 

Thank you, Jesus, that I no longer want to hide in a closet—or behind a façade. I will seek you in the morning, noon, and night so you can set me free from secret sins. 

Am I Okay, God? Devotionals from the Seventh Dimension

includes 26 more devotionals like this one and is a companion book

to Seventh Dimension - The Door, a Young Adult Fantasy

 

GUEST POST BY MICHAEL W. WEBB: What Inspired Me to Write “Infernal Gates”?

    

Ethan Freeman, ex-Special Forces Ranger, wakes up to discover he is the sole survivor of a fiery commercial airline crash that killed his entire family.  His nightmare is only beginning when he becomes the FBI’s prime suspect.  Only Ethan knows he’s not a cold-hearted murderer, but he has no idea what happened to him--and why he alone survived.

He finds an unlikely ally in Sam Weaver, the NTSB Chief Investigator.  An ex-military pilot, Sam senses Ethan is innocent.  She tries to remain dispassionate in her investigation of the crash even as she finds herself attracted to the man who may be Americas worst homegrown mass-murderer.

Neither Ethan nor Sam realize that shadowy spiritual forces are at work which will alter their lives forever.

A monstrous evil, imprisoned since the time of the Pharaohs, has been released by The Nine, a sinister group of powerful men and women who believe they are the direct descendants of the Anunnaki, ancient Sumerian gods. The demon they have unleashed intends to free The Destroyer from The Abyss, the angelic prison referred to in the Book of Revelation, and unleash a worldwide reign of terror and annihilation.

Facing impossible odds, time is running out for Ethan and all of humanity as he is drawn into an ever-deeper  conspiracy--millennia in the making--and learns that he is the key to stopping The Nine.

  

 *~*~*~*~*~*

It was a dark and stormy night . .
Ooops.  Not really! J  Sorry Snoopy.

I regularly drive long distances and have a great deal of time to think.  One morning, as I was headed to an appointment, the opening lines from Charles Dickens’ A Tale of Two Cities scrolled through my mind unexpectedly:  “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us, we were all going direct to Heaven, we were all going direct the other way.”

         

As I meditated on those powerful words in terms of the present condition of our fallen world, a fascinating thought popped into my head.  What would happen if my wife and I were on a commercial airliner that crashed within a few minutes of takeoff killing everyone on board—except us!  We awaken exactly 24 hours later, at home, in our bed, dressed in the same clothes we’d worn to the airport.  How would we explain what happened to us?

This is how all of my novels are born. A vivid opening scene, generally an action-filled, pulse-pounding sequence of events, but sometimes several lines of riveting dialog from a character I have yet to meet.  In the case of Infernal Gates, the opening line was “Less than ten minutes before we’re all dead, thought Ethan Freeman, and there is nothing I can do about it!

I’m a seat-of-the-pants writer.  I’ve never done an outline.  All of my stories begin as movies in my head.  I have a general idea about plot, but it morphs into something bigger than my imagination over time.  My characters are born, grow, and mature as I write.   At some point, they take control.  Then, all I do is transcribe as fast as I can whatever I see and hear.

Unbelievable fun—and I get paid to do this!

But I digress.  Back to the “inspiration” theme.

Most of us, sadly, see the world three-dimensionally.  But, as Rod Serling, the creator of The Twilight Zone was fond of saying: There is another dimension--a fourth dimension. A dimension not of sight or sound, or taste or touch, or hearing, but one that overlays the one we accept as the “real” world. A parallel universe layered over the terrestrial realm like a gossamer veil. In order to “see” into this realm and interact with it we must use gifts given to us by God that transcend our fleshly bodies—and our souls.

The realm of Spirit.

I’m inspired by God to write about this realm and explore the consequences of ignoring, denigrating, or misrepresenting its power to impact our lives for all eternity.

I hope you’ll take a chance on an “unknown writer” and join me in my world.

             Michael J. Webb graduated summa cum laude from the University of Florida and obtained his J. D. from the same university.  Over the past forty years he has travelled the world in search of adventure.

            He is a history buff, both ancient and modern, and is fascinated by the intersection of the scientific, supernatural, and Biblical world views, and has studied and taught from the Bible extensively for more than twenty-five years. He is also intrigued by recent discoveries in quantum physics that are now providing extraordinary insights into the reality of the spirit realm, especially as it relates to the study of Light.  He incorporates all of the above into his supernatural thrillers.

            Michael and his wife make their home in North Carolina.  

Books by Michael:  The Master’s Quilt, The Nephilim Parchments, The Song of the Seraphim (Giants in the Earth trilogy), The Oldest Enemy, Infernal Gates.  He is currently working on Devil’s Cauldron, the sequel to Infernal Gates.  He also authored a non-fiction work entitled In the Cleft of the Rock: Insights into the Blood of Jesus, Resurrection Power, and Saving the Soul. 

   

I DON'T WANT TO FORGIVE: Devotional from "Am I Okay, God?" by Lorilyn Roberts

Then Peter came and said to him, “Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me and I forgive him? Up to seven times?” Jesus said to him, I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven.”

—Matthew 18:21

Everyone agrees forgiveness is something we should do until we are confronted with the unforgivable.

*~*~*~*~*~*

From Seventh Dimension – The Door, a Young Adult Christian Fantasy:

I stood frozen as if shot with a stun gun. How could he be here? Memories hijacked me—the curse he put on me two years ago, the attack in the hallway, shaming me with the worm, and all the things too numerous to mention. He had made my life hell. I hated him. How dare he follow me here! I began to hyperventilate, feeling my way behind me with my hands.

“Don’t come near me or I’ll kill you.”

D

id Shale have the “right” to hate Judd? After all, he had molested her and made her life hell.

How about Judd? Was he justified in how he treated Shale? Shale had hurt Judd when she accidentally killed his puppy. Do two wrongs make a right?

I have been a Christian since I was twelve years old. At thirty I rededicated my life to Jesus Christ when I read the book of Romans in the New Testament. My desire to read the Bible was prompted when my husband left me for another woman.

At the core of my struggle was the fact I didn’t want to forgive him. I wanted to hold on to my pain because it was familiar. I had been in a lot of pain for a long time. I didn’t know how I would live without him and I didn’t feel like he deserved to be forgiven.

Besides that, I was grieving. Emotionally I was too distraught to be rational about the concept of forgiveness. Its stranglehold on me was relentless.

Once I reached the point I knew I needed to forgive, I wasn’t sure I wanted to. I felt like I had died a thousand deaths and there was no way I could forgive anyone who had hurt me that badly.

Has someone done something to you and you can’t seem to let go? Have you ever done something to someone else that caused that person immense pain?

Over the course of time, the raw memories will fade. The pain may ease, but will probably always be there. Despite the hurt, forgiveness brings acceptance and peace.

Hate is one of the strongest emotions of the human psyche. Martin Luther King said, “Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.”

How did Shale’s hatred toward Judd  spill out into other areas of her life? Do you want to be like Shale?

When you harbor unforgiveness, it’s toxic. You can’t compartmentalize it. Being unable to forgive will eventually take over your entire personality. Have you ever met an angry person?

Thoughts, emotions, and actions will be affected. Just like cancer invades a person’s body, hatred knows no boundaries.

Preoccupation with hate can become a full-time job. It takes a lot of energy to stay angry—energy that could be used for more constructive purposes. Satan is the only winner when you refuse to forgive. Is the price of unforgiveness worth it?

                                          *~*~*~*~*~*

Dear Jesus, I want to forgive, but I don’t know how. Help me to let go of my pain. Help me not to hate. Even if I was willing to forgive, it wouldn’t change what has already happened, but I don’t want to be separated from you. Please help me to forgive.

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